[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv id=\u0022republish_modal_form\u0022\u003E\u003Cform class=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form ecl-form\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 action=\u0022\/fr\/article\/modal\/6306\u0022 method=\u0022post\u0022 id=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 accept-charset=\u0022UTF-8\u0022\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizon articles can be republished for free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.\u003C\/p\u003E\n      \u003Cp\u003EYou must give appropriate credit. We ask you to do this by:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n      1) Using the original journalist\u0027s byline\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n      2) Linking back to our original story\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n      3) Using the following text in the footer: This article was originally published in \u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003EHorizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n      \u003Cp\u003ESee our full republication guidelines \u003Ca href=\u0027\/horizon-magazine\/republish-our-stories\u0027\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n      \u003Cp\u003EHTML for this article, including the attribution and page view counter, is below:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-form-item form-item js-form-type-textarea form-item-body-content js-form-item-body-content ecl-form-group ecl-form-group--text-area form-no-label ecl-u-mv-m\u0022\u003E\n        \n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n  \u003Ctextarea data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 aria-describedby=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 id=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 name=\u0022body_content\u0022 rows=\u00225\u0022 cols=\u002260\u0022 class=\u0022form-textarea ecl-text-area\u0022\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EThe cleaning power of sea sponges\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003EEvery day, a sea sponge can filter between two and 20 cubic metres of water per kilogram of bodyweight, and researchers are studying the possibility of using them on an industrial scale in a process known as bioremediation \u2013 where organisms are used to remove pollutants.\u003Cdiv class=\u0022text-center bg-bluelightest p-12 my-12 -mx-16\u0022\u003E\n  \u003Ch3 class=\u0022font-sans font-bold text-blue uppercase text-lg mb-8\u0022\u003EThe Issue\u003C\/h3\u003E\n  \u003Cspan class=\u0022inline-block w-1\/6 h-1 bg-blue mb-8\u0022\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\n  \u003Cp\u003EWhen pollutants enter the food chain, their concentration is likely to increase through a process known as biomagnification.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFor example, if a pesticide enters rivers, it is taken up by marine organisms, which are then eaten by fish. These fish are eaten by bigger fish, birds, land animals or even humans. One such substance is methylmercury, produced by burning some types of waste, which can affect the brain and nervous system of an unborn child.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe EU \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/ec.europa.eu\/environment\/chemicals\/reach\/reach_en.htm\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ERegistration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemical substances (REACH)\u003C\/a\u003E regulation has improved identification of the environmental risks posed by substances, while the \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/ec.europa.eu\/environment\/water\/water-framework\/index_en.html\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EWater Framework Directive\u003C\/a\u003E aims to cut back pollution in fresh water and coastal water.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018Sponges accumulate significant quantities of pollutants and could therefore contribute to preserving water quality or indeed cleaning up polluted zones,\u2019 said Dr Pierre Sauleau from the University of South Brittany\u2019s Biotechnology and Marine Chemistry Lab, France.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EEurope\u2019s coastal waters are periodically contaminated by numerous sources \u2013 overloaded sewage plants, medicines, pesticides, efflorescence of micro-algae in the water or chemicals from the sediment that is dredged from ports and dumped at sea.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018All these phenomena can lead to a temporary ban on collecting shellfish in those zones to comply with health regulations,\u2019 said Dr Sauleau, who is working alongside the shellfish industry in Brittany, western France. \u2018This has a serious impact on economic activity, including tourism because the health risk also applies to bathing and fishing areas.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EOysters\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHis work could have a major impact \u2013 France as a whole produced more than 84 000 tonnes of oysters and almost 74 000 tonnes of mussels in 2010\/2011, the most recent government statistics show, accounting for sales of almost EUR 500 million, spread across almost 3 000 companies.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018Water quality is essential to guarantee the quality of our products,\u2019 said Sonia Gachelin, from the Comit\u00e9 R\u00e9gional de la Conchyliculture (CRC) Bretagne Sud \u2013 southern Brittany\u2019s regional shellfish committee. \u2018Sea sponges seemed to us an interesting possibility even if we are still at the early stages.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe research was prompted by the concerns of the shellfish producers themselves who needed a way to keep their trawling grounds clean. It was possible under an EU initiative called Axis 4 which used financing from the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund in projects developed by coastal communities in partnerships known as Fisheries Local Action Groups (FLAGs).\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022text-center text-blue font-bold text-2xl w-full lg:w-1\/2 border-2 border-blue p-12 my-8 lg:m-12 lg:-ml-16 float-left\u0022\u003E\n  \u003Cspan class=\u0022text-5xl rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n  \u003Cp class=\u0022font-serif italic\u0022\u003E\u2018The risk for a researcher, as far as I\u2019m concerned, is becoming disconnected from the reality on the ground. The professionals are there to remind us of it and that\u2019s very inspiring.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\n  \u003Cfooter\u003E\n    \u003Ccite class=\u0022not-italic font-normal text-sm text-black\u0022\u003EDr Pierre Sauleau, University of South Brittany, France\u003C\/cite\u003E\n  \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThese links are important, not just for the communities and businesses involved, but also for the researchers.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018The risk for a researcher, as far as I\u2019m concerned, is becoming disconnected from the reality on the ground. The professionals are there to remind us of it and that\u2019s very inspiring,\u0027\u0026nbsp;said Dr Sauleau, referring to the work being done in Europe by the FLAGs.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ETests\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELocal businesses have been involved since the start of the project and have allowed the researchers to carry out tests on their marine sites.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWith the help of their shellfish industry partners, the scientists have studied how well several species of sea sponges found in Brittany absorb hydrocarbons, trace metals and tin derivatives compared with the Pacific oyster.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThey found that most of the species absorb the substances better than the oysters \u2013 one sponge in particular stood out in laboratory tests because of its ability to filter lead and biological agents including the bacteria \u003Cem\u003EE.coli\u003C\/em\u003E and \u003Cem\u003EVibrio aestuarianus\u003C\/em\u003E, which kill shellfish.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018These preliminary results suggest that it would be possible to reduce the accumulation of certain chemical and biological pollutants in marine sediments and water through bioremediation by sea sponges,\u2019 said Dr Sauleau.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBut the researchers still need to establish what happens to pollutants including medicines, nanoparticles and plastics in a laboratory, which they need to do before trying the process in a natural setting, Dr Sauleau says, adding that sea sponges are difficult to cultivate.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EArticle continues below\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cfigure role=\u0022group\u0022 class=\u0022@aligncenter@\u0022\u003E\n\u003Cimg alt=\u0022The next step for researchers is to find a way to use sea sponges on an industrial scale. Images courtesy of Pierre Sauleau\u0022 height=\u0022451\u0022 src=\u0022\/research-and-innovation\/sites\/default\/files\/hm\/2%20sponges.PNG\u0022 title=\u0022The next step is to use sea sponges on an industrial scale in bioremediation. Images courtesy of Pierre SauleauThe next step for researchers is to find a way to use sea sponges on an industrial scale. Images courtesy of Pierre Sauleau\u0022 width=\u00221200\u0022\u003E\n\u003Cfigcaption class=\u0022italic mb-4\u0022\u003EThe next step for researchers is to find a way to use sea sponges on an industrial scale. Images courtesy of Pierre Sauleau\u003C\/figcaption\u003E\n\u003C\/figure\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELonger-term, the researchers also have a separate sea sponge project \u2013 they are trying to isolate new molecules that could eventually be used in the treatment of cancer. \u2018This is still far off,\u2019 says Dr Sauleau. \u2018For the moment we are more focused on bioremediation.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EVideo explaining the work of Axis 4.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ciframe src=\u0022https:\/\/europa.eu\/webtools\/crs\/iframe\/?oriurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fembed%2FpVq_rc4Tohw\u0022 width=\u0022560\u0022 height=\u0022315\u0022 frameborder=\u00220\u0022\u003E\u003C\/iframe\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/textarea\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n            \u003Cdiv id=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 class=\u0022ecl-help-block description\u0022\u003E\n      Please copy the above code and embed it onto your website to republish.\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cinput autocomplete=\u0022off\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022form-goiy8enz3udzovok9umphgjdc06qrimc6hufdz1bx4q\u0022 type=\u0022hidden\u0022 name=\u0022form_build_id\u0022 value=\u0022form-GoIY8EnZ3UDZoVOK9umphgjdC06qrImc6hufdZ1Bx4Q\u0022 \/\u003E\n\u003Cinput data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 type=\u0022hidden\u0022 name=\u0022form_id\u0022 value=\u0022modal_form_example_modal_form\u0022 \/\u003E\n\u003C\/form\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E","dialogOptions":{"width":"800","modal":true,"title":"Republish this content"}}]